In the end, Wooyeon reluctantly agreed to the study session. While deciding on the location over a serving of tteokbokki, he couldn’t shake off the feeling that something was amiss. However, he couldn’t undo the spilled water, and there was no turning back now.
‘Then let’s study at Wooyeon’s place today.’
To make matters worse, he even provided the study space. The club room was occupied by other members, and the study rooms were fully booked, and the conditions were not favorable for others.
Seongyu lived with his parents, and Garam, in a small one-room apartment, so Wooyeon protested with half-hearted reluctance.
‘… And what about you, senior?’
Dohyun answered with a slightly softened face. Originally, he used to live alone, but now his younger brother was staying with him. Hearing that, Wooyeon, who had casually asked if the brother was also an Alpha, was momentarily speechless.
‘I’m the only Alpha in my house.’
Unusual traits are fundamentally inherited only from unusual traits. Just like Wooyeon was born between alpha and omega, and he had thought it was the same for Dohyun. Once again, a sense of frustration welled up at the fact that he knew nothing about it.
***
Before Wooyeon knew it, the professor was standing at the podium. Glancing over the classroom, he skipped Junseong’s name as he used to. He quickly moved on to Mr. ‘Kwon’ for attendance but someone quickly raised their hand.
“Professor, I’m here.”
Wooyeon instinctively turned towards the direction where the answer came from. The voice was familiar, but the vivid nape of the neck seemed strangely familiar. Of course, it couldn’t be. It was at that moment when Wooyeon, who had thought so, was trying to avoid getting his attention.
“Kang Junseong? Yeah, how are you after the accident?”
“I’m fully recovered now.”
Junseong turned his head. Wooyeon took a deep breath, stiffening his expression. An unforgettable face came into view sharply.
‘You little pig.’
Why does the bad premonition seem inevitable? Why does the damn jinx, without avoiding it, find its way to Wooyeon? The voice that used to curse, the mouth that often ridiculed Wooyeon, and the eyes filled with disdain. All of these things pushed Wooyeon to the edge of the cliff.
‘Yeon is a bastard.’
Wooyeon pressed his nails in his palms, calming his quickened breath. Memories passed by like a breeze and clung to him like mud. His heart pounded unpleasantly, and his pheromones vibrated sluggishly.
“Seon Wooyeon.”
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
It was an unforgettable memory. He hadn’t been beaten, but his feelings were hurt, and he hadn’t been robbed of money, but his mind was impoverished. If it weren’t for Dohyun, it would have been a time with almost no good memories.
“Isn’t Seon Wooyeon here?”
“Wooyeon, they’re calling you.”
Random exclamations popped up like a sudden downpour. Wooyeon raised his hand only after the junior sitting behind him gave his back a light tap. Yes, as he responded, Junseong turned his head towards Wooyeon.
“…”
“…”
The meeting of gazes was intense. Wooyeon’s throat felt as if he had swallowed needles, stinging and emitting a silent scream. Memories kept resurfacing, vividly swirling in Wooyeon’s mind just like they did yesterday.
“Fuck, ignoring me again?”
A diagonal span, a mere five steps, to a close distance that felt like swallowing a needle. The past that tormented him was now a tangible presence. Though his hair was dyed yellow, and his facial features had become more pronounced, it was undoubtedly the ‘Kang Junseong’ that Wooyeon remembered.
“Now, where did we leave off last time?”
Wooyeon reluctantly turned his head and clenched his jaw. There was no way to avoid the gaze that met his own, and shortly after, the other person turned away. Wooyeon let out a tightly held breath.
Even during the lecture, Wooyeon couldn’t focus on proper note-taking. Doubts about whether he had achieved the necessary grades to enroll in this university and resentment towards the inexplicable coincidence coexisted within him. How likely was it that, in the same university but different departments, they would end up taking the same elective?
“The midterm exam will be replaced by a group project. Since the groups were chosen arbitrarily, don’t think about changing them.”
He hadn’t been able to hear the professor’s words for quite some time. Wooyeon clenched the inside of his cheek, swallowing dry saliva repeatedly. What was so good about it was that Junseong, holding his phone, was engrossed in conversation with a friend beside him.
‘I hope he doesn’t recognize me.’
Fortunately, the speculation was that Junseong wouldn’t recognize him. Wooyeon had grown taller, lost weight, dyed his hair, and ditched the glasses. Even his own mother wouldn’t recognize the changes, let alone Junseong.
‘Teacher didn’t recognize me either…’
He placed his hand lightly on his chest and regulated his breath. It wasn’t a small class, and it was a well-known elective with a large capacity. Since it was only for about two months until the end of the semester, Wooyeon planned to quietly endure until then. Unless the group projects overlapped, the chances of running into him were extremely low.
“Until the end of April, bring in an invention suitable for the global era. You don’t have to actually make it, but it should be realistic. Prepare a PowerPoint presentation, and submit a separate report.”
Wooyeon belatedly focused on the professor’s words. After finishing the speech, the professor looked at the group formation chart and called names. Junseong was the first to be called, and two others with ‘Kwon’ and ‘Kim’ in their names were also called. The issue arose when the last name was called.
“Up to Seon Wooyeon, it’s Group 1.”
Wooyeon raised his hand with a bewildered expression. When he stood up and pushed the chair back, all eyes turned towards him.
“I’m Seon Wooyeon from the Department of English Literature. …I think there might be a mistake in the name.”
As names starting with ‘ㄱ’ (G) were being called, suddenly his name, starting with ‘선’ (Seon), was called. He couldn’t understand the reason for his inclusion. Wondering if there was a mistake, he raised the question, but the professor shook his head with a kind expression.
“The previous four names were sorted in order of names, and we randomly selected one student from the Department of Oriental Studies. You, student Seon Wooyeon, are indeed in Group 1.”
Wooyeon was at a loss for words and blinked. Randomly selecting from the Department of Oriental Studies? Why on earth?
If only he could argue, However, the professor casually added an explanation.
“Since we’re on the topic, if you present in a foreign language during the presentation, there will be extra points, so keep that in mind. Of course, it’s optional, and if there’s a team member who presents better than students from the Department of Oriental Studies, feel free to let someone else do it.”
After finishing the statement, the professor asked if there were any further questions for Wooyeon. Wooyeon, claiming to be fine now, mumbled his words and took his seat. The focused attention on him quickly returned to the professor.
“Now, Group 2…”
During the presentations of Groups 2 and 3, Wooyeon bowed his head and rolled his eyes. It wasn’t entirely random, and he had no more arguments against it. He wished he could ask to change groups, but hadn’t he just been warned not to think about it?
“Now, let’s gather in groups to decide on the team leader and such. After deciding, inform the teaching assistant.”
With that, the professor left the classroom. Instead, the teaching assistant who came in began to organize the bustling classroom. Wooyeon, feeling the urge to leave the space immediately, closed his eyes tightly, then opened them.
‘Damn it…’
A good solution just wouldn’t come to his mind. Now, he felt uneasy to the point of cursing inwardly. He couldn’t understand how such a situation could occur purely by chance. Improbable coincidences were turning into a sinister fate that was strangling him.
“Are you Seon Wooyeon?”
Wooyeon, barely managing to maintain a poker face, looked up. Kang Junseong had approached him without him realizing it. Although he wanted to pretend not to know him, it was difficult with the risk of receiving a bad grade.
“Five people, including you, are in Group 1.”
There were unfamiliar faces around Junseong. Junseong, sitting casually on a desk, smiled subtly. It was a repulsive smile, enough to make Wooyeon feel sick.
“I’m Kang Junseong, a freshman in Computer Science. You’re also a freshman, right? Twenty years old?”
Really, it was a face that didn’t recognize Wooyeon. Just as Dawon had said, you could tell from the student directory. When Wooyeon didn’t respond, the puzzled expression on the face that wrinkled slightly was also unfamiliar.
“By any chance… are you a senior?”
Wooyeon suppressed a laughter that was about to burst out and sighed. In the past, if there was no response, insults and profanity would follow, but now the tone has changed from casual to formal. It was amusing, absurd, and above all, Wooyeon felt a sense of emptiness.
“Yeah, I’m a freshman.”
He replied, pretending to be nonchalant. Junseong’s expression quickly brightened, and the other team members were also pleased to hear that they were all freshmen. Wooyeon could faintly sense the Alpha pheromone from him.
“Thank goodness, I thought I made a mistake and was surprised.”
‘A bastard who hasn’t even manifested.’
The friendly voice overlapped with a voice Wooyeon had heard before. Wooyeon recalled the pride Junseong had about being an Alpha as he swallowed down the bitterness.
“Well, let’s start by choosing the team leader…”
In the third year of middle school, Junseong would occasionally smear Wooyeon’s belongings with pheromones. Naturally, Wooyeon didn’t notice, and every time he used those items, Junseong would laugh loudly.
“… Why do you look at me like that?”
Traits were not a standard for measuring superiority. Just as some had moles on their faces, and some had wavy hair, these are simply characteristics that are determined from birth. The fact that Junseong formed a group of alphas was nothing more than a childish division during his adolescence.
“It’s nothing.”
Wooyeon raised his head with a dismal feeling. The insignificant pheromone lingered in the air. Wooyeon, who hadn’t manifested at that time, didn’t know, but the dominant Omega now could tell. Despite treating people like animals and disregarding them, Junseong was passionate.
“But you… You look really pretty.”
Junseong smoothed his bleached hair with a cool expression. He said that when he first saw Wooyeon, he thought he was a celebrity, so he was extremely surprised when their eyes met. Even though there was a hint of embarrassment on his face, a bit of excitement could be glimpsed in the face that spoke.
“Your pheromone scent is also really nice.”
Wooyeon felt a sense of helplessness as if he wanted to let out a mocking laugh. Junseong, who had been praising Wooyeon in a rambling manner, had started blushing shyly at some point. The gaze, different from before, relentlessly assaulted Wooyeon’s memories.
“Dominant, right?”
“…Uh.”
It felt like he could burst into laughter at any moment. My pheromone scent is good? Wooyeon, reminiscing once again, lowered his gaze.
“Yeah, dominant.”
You used to tell me I smelled. The words he couldn’t say got stuck in his throat.
Don’t tell me he’ll start hitting on him 😭😭😭
And maybe he is the one who left his pheromones on our wooyeon staff in the library 😲😲😲😲😲
Our wooyeon has two mad-dog tailing him now. Be strong my baby
And by the way dohyun behaviour is something else 😏😏😏😏😏 😙
Thank you for the translation ❤️❤️❤️❤️😍😍🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰
I always wait patiently for the new update 😭😭😭😭 it makes my day amd melt away all the week fatigue ❤️❤️❤️❤️
reading this comment made my day QAQ
I’m so happy you’re enjoying this😍💛
It’ll be interesting to see how everyone, who knew him in the past, finds out and reacts. Well, I don’t know for sure if that’ll happen, but it would be interesting if it did. I wonder how people would feel. I assume the bully will start perusing the MC. This seems like it will definitely get complicated.
Are you telling me that Koreans are blind? How can they not see the cutie that Woo is?
Just think a little bit, he’s traumatised and he’s telling us that when he declared to Dohuyn, he changed his phone and went to ms, like???
And four years are more than enough to forget feelings, bc he was 16 at that age and now he’s 20 (but you can see how down he is for Dohyun)
I’m glad i don’t know korean, bc I’ll be fighting on the comment section
Btw, I’m scared over the bully apparition
I’m more of a silent reader but these comments made me so fucking maddddd T.T
I really thought that the way the author described Wooyeon’s struggles and emotions was realistic😖💔
I can now understand everything, thank you for the hard work ♥️